The Cyber Ascension Arc 4 | Volume 4 | Chapter 30
"The Reality"
The room froze. Every heartbeat thundered as disbelief filled the space. Shadows flickered violently, tracing subtle glitches at the edges of perception, whispering of truths too deep for the students to grasp.
Second Musukoni: "What's happening? Anyone… tell me!"
His voice trembled slightly, though he tried to mask it with bravado.
Shioinkin's gaze swept across the group, unwavering, commanding, a pillar of authority amidst chaos.
Shioinkin: "I'm the real one, students."
Time itself seemed to shiver. The faint glow of holographic panels cast distorted reflections on faces, while mist curled around their feet like a living entity. Every student's heart pounded. Paths they believed were clear… were only beginnings of something far older, far stranger.
Jin Yuan gripped the hilt of his giant katana tightly, feeling his pulse thump in his ears in a way he had never experienced. The tension in the room was tangible, almost oppressive.
Nashino stepped protectively in front of Youchina, eyes narrowed.
Nashino: "It's time for revelation. Who's the real one… who is the real Sensei?"
His voice carried confusion, mixed with urgency.
Second Musukoni: "What the hell is happening here!? Anyone explain it to me!"
Inside, his thoughts raced uncontrollably: I just went to stretch in the garden… how did this happen? What… what is going on?!
Jin Yuan's calm yet firm voice cut through the turmoil.
Jin Yuan: "Come on… reveal it."
Then, in a flash, Musukoni—the one who had transformed into Shioinkin—shifted again. His form shimmered like liquid mist, twisting and unraveling before disappearing entirely.
(From the corner of perception, a shadow blinked out. The 8th shadow, gone—but no one noticed.)
Nashino: "What the hell just happened?"
The mist coalesced again—Musukoni solidified, smiling with that playful, unnervingly calm expression he always wore.
Musukoni: "I'm the real Musukoni, guys."
Yuzurei: "HUH!? What the heck is this!"
Shioinkin's analytical voice sliced through the panic.
Shioinkin: "That creature… it can transform into mist in seconds, mimic voices and shapes… but it cannot replicate personality."
Musukoni: "Which is why it couldn't keep up my personality."
Youchina: "Hm… this is something else."
A sudden rumble split the air. The floor beneath them shifted and cracked—the Blue Realm gates opened, glowing with a fierce azure light. Before they could react, the ground gave way beneath them.
The students tumbled, separated by chance—or fate.
Nashino and Youchina fell in one direction.
Jin Yuan plummeted alone.
Emily and Shinoki fell together.
Musukoni and Yuzurei landed together.
Shioinkin descended alone.
---
Jin Yuan landed atop an endless stretch of high-tech buildings, each structure gleaming with an impossible metallic sheen. The horizon stretched endlessly, pulsating faintly with circuits of light.
A figure approached slowly. His presence was chilling—pale as snow, long black hair cascading over a black suit, eyes deep and black like voids.
Shinjukuna: "Oh… finally. We meet."
Jin Yuan: "What do you mean by that?"
His giant katana glimmered, coursing with blue thunderlight, reacting instinctively to the threat.
Shinjukuna: "Your Cyber Hunters… all my threats that survived. Once I eliminate you, I can expand my realm, my control. The world itself bends to me."
(In the shadows, unnoticed, something stirs—his watcher, observing silently, never stepping into view.)
---
The fight erupted.
Shinjukuna's hands transformed fluidly into axes, katanas, hammers, each strike faster than thought. Sparks of energy collided with Jin Yuan's thunder-infused katana, sending shockwaves that rattled the endless cityscape.
Hours passed in an endless blur of motion. The combatants collided, twisted, and shifted, each attack a precise calculation, each block a test of strength and will.
Then—without warning—they plummeted into a deep, unseen chasm. Darkness swallowed them, yet it was not empty.
They landed in a vast library-like realm, infinite in scale. Walls covered in glowing text, floors lined with endless rows of towering books, each tome radiating knowledge beyond imagination.
Jin Yuan: "What… is this?"
Shinjukuna: "I… never thought… there's another place in the Blue Realm…"
Even here, the fight resumed. Explosive sparks and fire erupted with every clash, yet the library remained untouched—untouched, unscathed, almost sacred in its resilience.
Finally, Jin Yuan's katana pierced Shinjukuna's chest. He collapsed. Shinjukuna's last breath was a whisper of acknowledgment before life faded.
Jin Yuan sank to his knees, massive katana resting beside him, hand on his knee, chest heaving with exhaustion and adrenaline.
---
When he looked around, something caught his eye—a massive square object wrapped in golden threads, pulsating softly.
Jin Yuan: "What is this…"
He uncovered it—a new dark brown book, fresh, untouched. As he opened it, tears welled in his eyes, spilling over uncontrollably. Memories of every battle, every sacrifice, every moment they had saved the Earth surged through him, overwhelming his heart.
At the center of the library, a tree with blue leaves stretched impossibly high. Jin Yuan reached out, touching it. The world flashed white.
He opened his eyes to find himself submerged in deep black water, light nonexistent, only blue ripples surrounding a glowing sphere. He approached, hands trembling, then…
BOOM!
He was back in the library.
A figure appeared suddenly—young, around 25, face calm but lethal. Before Jin Yuan could react, a blade pierced his chest.
Future Jin Yuan: "Hm… it's time for that… my past self. Rest, I am at peace."